Lesson 1 - Work area, file browser and history palette
Image types, selecting tools in different ways and viewing images in different ways, keyboard shortcuts, managing palettes and context sensitive and on-line help. Using the History palette and snapshots to correct mistakes and go back to earlier states of your work. Using the File Browser to manage image collections.
Adobe Photoshop 7 Lesson One: Getting to Know the Work Area
In this class we will be working “continuous-tone images”, that is,
photographs that have been scanned, taken with a digital camera,
obtained on-line or copied from CD’s. They are digital images that can
be manipulated on a computer. The information that makes up the
image is stored as pixels, short for “picture elements” and The density of
these pixels, described as image resolution in pixels per inch, along with
the document's dimensions, contributes to the image’s total file size,
expressed in kilobytes or megabytes.
You can also create images directly in Photoshop. Photoshop is a
bit–mapped graphics program. – or “paint” program, which produces a
collection of pixels. Each pixel has additional data associated with it,
describing its hue, saturation and brightness. A pixel is stored internally as
bits, and a map of these bits make up the image, hence the term “bit
mapped.” The more bits that make up each pixel, the more information it
can carry and the greater the range of color in an image. One bit pixels
can be either “on” or “off” and thus be only black or white. An eight bits
image can display 256 colors and 24 bits can display 16 million color
values.
To modify a shape created in a paint program, you must modify the
pixels in the part of the shape that you want to change. This contrasts with
images created in drawing applications such as Adobe Illustrator. These
are called vector images and are described mathematically by lines and
curves. Vector images can be enlarged or reduced without affecting
their output quality, while bit-mapped images are resolution–dependent
and may display jagged edges or otherwise lose quality if enlarged too
much beyond their original input. Vector graphics are useful for logos,
illustrations and graphs, whereas bit mapped graphics programs are
better able to handle photographs.
There are four clusters of tools in Photoshop that you need to be
familiar with – the Menu Bar at the top of the work area, the floating
Toolbox, the Tool Options Bar below the menu bar, and the Palette
Groups. The important thing to remember is that there is more than one
way to do most things in Photoshop. Use whatever method feels most©2004 E. Barbara Meyer - Educational Technologies Center – Life Sciences -2-
comfortable, but I urge you to make an effort to learn keyboard
commands when they’re available.
http://www.life.illinois.edu/edtech/training/ps/PS7intro.pdf
The Toolbox in Photoshop 7.0
1. Select a tool with the mouse or by a keyboard shortcut.
2. Position mouse over the tool to see the name appear.
3. A small triangle on the lower right of a tool icon means there are
“hidden” tools underneath that are revealed by clicking and
dragging.
4. Tools are roughly clustered by category.
Tool Options Bar
1. If a tool behaves unexpectedly, check its options to see if they’ve
been reset. Click the tool icon on the left to reset values back to
default.
2. Options are context sensitive. Some features are common to many
tools, others are unique.
3. The options toolbar can be moved around if you like.
4. It has a “palette well” where you can stash frequently used palettes.
Palettes
1. Show and hide palettes with Window Menu or Tab key.-
2. A palette can be moved by dragging its title bar, reordered by
clicking on its tabs, and resized by clicking and dragging on the
lower right.
3. You will definitely need to resize the history palette and very likely
the layers palette as well.
4. Palettes have their own menus, which are generally subsets of those
on the Menu bar. Click and hold on the black triangle in the upper
right corner of a palette in order to see them.
5. Hint: create your own custom palette of the features you use most,
by “tearing off” tabs and putting them on top of one another.©2004 E. Barbara Meyer - Educational Technologies Center – Life Sciences-3-
6. Palettes positions are saved when you exit Photoshop. To return
them to their default locations, choose Window>reset palette
locations.
Customizing your workspace
You’ll find that certain types of Photoshop projects will make frequent
use of some palettes and rarely need others. You can open and close
palettes, recombine them and you can save different combinations.
Additionally, you can reset all palette locations back to default.
1. To reset palettes to their default locations:
Window>Workspace>Reset Palette Locations.
2. To save a particular workspace: Window>Workspace>Save
workspace. Give it a name for the particular task.
Viewing an image
Remember that when you change the view of an image, you are only
changing the way it looks on your monitor, not it’s actual print or file size.
There are multiple ways to change the view of an image.
1. Use the View Menu - View>Zoom in/Out; Fit on Screen, etc.
2. Zoom tool “z” – double clicking returns image to 100%
3. Hand tool "h" – double clicking makes the image “fit on screen”
4. Spacebar – Command + spacebar zooms in; Command + option +
spacebar zooms out.
5. Navigator palette
6. Info bar – just enter in the new percentage you'd like
7. Select the hand tool to scroll an image that’s larger than your
document window . Use the spacebar anytime while using another
tool will tinvoke it temporaily.
Context Sensitive Menus
Display a list of actions relevant to the tool you’re using by command
clicking on the image. (Right click on the PC)
Online Help
Online help has a table of contents, an index and a keyword search
feature, as well as hyperlinks to related topics and color example
images. Lesson 2 - Basic Photo Corrections and saving for the web
Choosing the correct resolution, cropping, resizing, adjusting the tonal range, removing color casts, adjusting saturation and brightness, clone tool to eliminate unwanted parts of an image, pattern stamp tool, healing brush, patch tool and history brush, sharpening an image. Optimizing an image for the web.
Basic Guide to Photoshop Correction Photo Correction in Photoshop 7.0
In general you should complete the steps in this order, though not all processes might be necessary for every image. Some touchups such as increasing color saturation or sharpening might be best done on only a selected portion of an image. Before you start, always make a copy of your untouched image and save it as a backup and archive.
Step 1. Determine the correct dimensions and image resolution for your final work.
This will depend on what you plan to do with it. Image resolution refers to the number of small squares, called pixels, that make up the image and provide it’s detail and colors. The greater the number of pixels an image contains, the larger the file size.
In computer graphics, there are different types of resolution. Image resolution refers to the number of pixels per unit length in an image and is measured in ppi (pixels per inch)
The number of pixels per unit length on a monitor is called monitor resolution, measured in dpi (dots per inch) In day-to-day use, these units are used interchangeably, though they are not the same and can cause some confusion when your image resolution is higher than your monitor resolution. In this case, the image will appear larger on screen than it’s specified print dimensions. This is because in Photoshop, image pixels are translated into directly into monitor pixels, therefore, a 1 inch by 1 inch image at 144 ppi will display as a 2 inch by 2 inch image on a 72 dpi monitor. It will print as 1 by 1, but display larger. If you’re working with images greater than 72 ppi, it’s a good idea to display rulers and or check the print size to monitor the “real” dimensions of your work.
If you plan to print the image, then you have to be aware of the output resolution of your printer. A higher resolution printer will get best results from higher resolution images. If you are working with a service bureau or journal the easiest thing to do is ask them what resolution (and image format) is best. If you are printing on a standard laser printer in Life Sciences, 120 to 150 dpi is about right. If you have your own color inkjet, it’s best to experiment but it will probably be in the same range.
The two most important things to remember about image resolution:
Virtually every image needs at least some cropping to remove unwanted detail that distracts from the subject and creates unnecessary file size.
Step 3. Adjust the tonal range using Image>Adjustments> Levels.
It’s a rare photo that isn’t improved by some adjustment to it’s highlights, shadows and midtones . This can also be done automatically by Image> Adjustments> Autocontrast, which is handy when you’re in a hurry, but in general you get better results by doing it manually with Levels.
Step 4. Remove unwanted artifacts and repair image
The clone stamps, healing brush and patch tool, along with the history palette, are powerful tools that can be pure magic. Use them wisely. The Rubber Stamp hase been probably the most widely used of the retouching tools. You first have to determine the area of the image you want to clone FROM – them press Option(or Alt on the PC) to “pick up” the pattern there. Next, move your cursor to the unwanted object, then drag or click on it. You’ll see a crosshair appear at the original source point, indicating where you’re copying from. Clicking randomly here and there on your unwanted object usually results in more realistic results, as the human eye is very good at picking up the repeated patterns that can occur from smooth dragging. Aligning the source point with the destination point is usually more precise in keeping lighting conditions and shadows similar, and changing source points frequently when erasing a larger area also reduces unwanted patterns.
Photoshop 7.0's new healing brush and patch tool are amazing though, in that they preserve the texture of the unlaying object.
Hint: For removing an object from a plain, relatively flat background with even lighting, simply making a selection of the background with one of the selection tools and pasting it over the object will do the trick. If you select the “feather” option (4 or 5 pixels) before making the selection, you’ll have a softer edge that will likely blend in better.
Hint: The Dust and Scratches Filter is a quick way to rid a scanned image of bits of dirt and and imperfections.
Step 5. Remove unwanted color casts with Image>Adjustments>Color Balance
Improper color casts can be artifacts from digital cameras or scanners; aged photos or slides. If present, they are easy to correct in Photoshop. Even if you can’t see them it pays sometimes to play with color balance to see if it improves the image.
Note on the Retouching Tools:
You might want to improve the color, tone or contrast of selected parts of the image with the retouching tools. All of them use the Brushes Palette to determine their size, and many have an opacity setting and blending modes to consideras well.
Step 6. Adjust saturation and brightness if necessary with Imagements>Adjust> Hue / Saturation.
This can be overdone, but is invaluable for a dull image. Often Powerpoint images will display much better if they are a little oversaturated. Sometimes just part of an image could stand some brightening with the sponge tool.
Step 7. Sharpen image if necessary with Filters>Sharpen> Unsharp Mask.
There are several sharpening tools in Photoshop, and all work by increasing the contrast between neighboring pixels. Sharpenand Sharpen More sharpens the entire image, or a selection, if you’ve made one. Sharpen Edges affects only those areas with the highest contrast.
But the rather pecularly named Unsharp Mask is the most powerful. It’s name refers to an older film compositing technique that corrects blurring introduced during the production process. By highlighting the edges of an image by combining a blurred film negative with the original film positive, it's able to by locate “edges”, or pixels that differ from adjacent pixels by an amount you specify, and accentuate them. Its affects are far more pronounced on screen than when printed, so you may have to experiment. You can also get good results by using the sharpening tool on parts of an image as well.
Amount – the degree (up to 500%) with which you want to sharpen the image. The higher the value, the more dramatic the effect. Values between 25 and 50% generally produce subtle effects. Between 50 and 300% are more pronounced.
Radius – the thickness of the sharpened edge. The higher the value, the more contrast. The ideal value depends on the resolution of your images (dots per inch) and the edge detail already present, and might be affected by old, grainy photographs and imperfections. For on-screen images such as web graphics, 0.5 results in fine, crisp edges. For printing, with a resolution of from 120 to 180 dpi, use a value of 1.0. Though the edges may appear more pronounced on-screen, on paper they’ll look better.
Threshold – how different two adjacent pixels have to be to be considered an edge. The value, from 0 to 255, is the “brightness value”. The lower the value, the lower the threshold, and they will be considered different and sharpened. The higher the threshold, the more likely they are to be excluded from the sharpening.
Hint: Sharpen incrementally by doing Command+F (Control +F in Windows) after you sharpen the first time. Using a filter once moves it to the “Last Filter” slot in the Filter Menu. The Command/Control F keyboard shortcut invokes Last Filter and you can continue to use it until you go too far. Back up a step with Command/Control Z or use the History Palette to back up even further.
Step 8. Save the image in the appropriate format. We’ll talk more about formats in another handout.
Notes:
"Red eye" in photographs is caused by the camera's flash reflecting off the the back of the subject's eye. The spookey red glow results from the fact that the retina is rich with blood vessels. It appears worse if the photo is taken in a darkened room, when the pupils are more dilated.
Most of the new digital cameras have a "red eye reduction" setting involving an extra flash or series of flashes that allow the pupils to adjust and contract, reducing the surface area of retina exposed to the flash. In my experience this feature is worse useless when it comes to photographing critters, as most will flee or cower after the first blaze of light. While you can ask a human to look away from the camera, or warn them ahead of time about the oncoming barrage, generally one chance is all you get with most animals, so it's better to be prepared to do some tweaking later on the digital file.
Based on a lesson at About.com, and excellent source of graphics tips:http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/photoshop/ht/apsredeye.htm?terms=redeye
1. First, make two copies of the image, so you'll have three copies open.
a. Make a duplicate the image with Edit>Duplicate. This will make a copy that will not change as you edit, so you can compare your changes to the original so gauge your progress.
b. Open another copy in a new window by going to Window > Document> New Window. This will allow you to work with the original at a high magnification and view the changes in real time at 100% magnification on this copy
2. In the original, zoom in on the eyes, leave the other copies at 100%. Arrange the windows so you can see all of them, plus the layers palette.
3. Create a new layer.
4. Using the eyedropper, pick up a color from the outside of the iris that best represents the true eye color. It should have just a touch of color with a gray cast.
5. On the new layer, carefully paint over just the red part of the eyes.
6. You may want to gently soften the edges with the smudge tool or Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur, set to 1 pixel.
7. Set the layer blend mode to Saturation. This will preserve the highlights, but might leave the eyes too gray and hollow looking. If so try the next step.
8. Duplicate the saturation layer and change the mode to Hue, which should put some color back but still preserve the highlights. If the color is too strong, reduce the opacity of this layer. You can darken the pupil area with the burn tool if necessary.
Merge layers when satisfied with the results.
© 2003 - E. Barbara Meyer - EdTech Center - Life Sciences - University of Illinois - Urbana, IL USA
Return to Barbara's Photoshop Notes
http://www.life.illinois.edu/edtech/training/ps/correct/redeye.html
Retouching Tools in Photoshop 7.0 Lesson 3- Working with Selections
Basics of selecting and moving objects - which is primary to working in Photoshop. Selecting parts of an image with a variety of tools, using multiple selection tools to make complex selections, moving and duplicating selections, adding, subtracting and rotating selections.
Making and moving selections
Marquee Tools The marquee tool (and it's buddies) lets you create rectangular, elliptical, single row selections and lets you crop the image too. You click and drag it over the desired area with these tools.
Lasso Tools
The lasso tools allow you to draw freehand selections - either smooth or polygon shaped.
The magic wand tool lets you select an area based on color similarities of adjacent pixels. (Note: the Select>Color range command also selects on the basis of color, but it selects non-adjacent pixels as well)
Move Tool
The move tool is used to drag a selection when no selection tool is active.
Lesson 4 - Layer Basics
Learn how create and or ganize an image with layers and how layers affect file size, learn the Layers palette and how to select, view, hide, link and reorder layers. Apply blending modes and add a gradient and text and layer effects. Save a flattened image without layers.
What are layers and what's the big deal anyway?Layers are like sheets of acetate, transparent except where there is artwork on them. You can view all of them at once, or selectively "hide" individual layers to view only one or a few. They allow a high degree of control over your artwork, as each layer can be moved, reordered and edited independently.All layers have opacity sliders, so that you can allow the background or underlying layers to show through.Layers can be reordered in the "stack" by dragging the layer up or down in the layers palette.You can copy a layer into another document by having both documents open and dragging the layer name from the layers palette of the first document and dropping it into the image window of the second.You can "lock layers" together, and a single effect will apply to all layers locked together this way.A layer is transparent until you paint something on it, but once it contains pixels, you can confine editing to only that artwork by selecting "Preserve Transparency" in the Layers Palette.How many layers can you have?You can have up to 100 layers, depending on computer memory. When you create a new document in Photoshop, it has only one layer - the background layer. It's like the canvas of a painting. It can't be moved up within the layer hierachy unless you first convert it to a layer in it's layer options palette. You do have an option when creating a new document of not having a background layer by choosing the Transparent option in the New dialog box. You can also add a background to an image that doesn't have one by selecting the Background mode in the New layer dialog box.How do I create layers?For a new, blank layer - click on the new layer icon on the bottom of the Layers Palette. Or - you can use the Layer Menu bar selection and select "New Layer".You can create a layer from a selection by first making the selection, then going up to the Layers Menu bar selection to New Layer and selecting "Layer via copy" or "Layer via cut"You can also create new layers by pasting or by using the text tool. (See below)You can have up to 100 layers, depending on computer memory.Whoa! My document has layers! I didn't put them there. Who did?Whenever you paste or move a selection in a document, it's automatically pasted into a new layer and appears just above the active layer. You can also copy a selection into a new layer with Layer>New>Layer via Copy (or cut). Text also is placed into its own layer.How do layers effect image format and file size?Images with layers, or images with no backgrounds, can be stored only in Photoshop format.Having layers adds to the size of the document, as the information for each must be stored independently. The storage requirements for each layer are proportional to the amount of pixel information on the layer.Transparent areas to not count.Once you have completed work on more than one layer you can merge them together to help keep the file size down, while you continue working on the document. When finished, you should merge all layers into a "flattened image" containing only one layer. Be certain you are finished though, as once merged or flattened, layers cannot be retrieved. It's best to save a copy of the document in Photoshop format with all it's layers if you think you'll need to go back and edit it.What does the "Preserve Transparency" check box do?Checking this option will allow you to work only on those parts of the layer that are "pigmented" - i.e. have pixel information. The parts of the layer that have no "paint" on them will be "see through" - and will not be affected. Certain filters - like the blur - will not work on a layer with this option is selected, as they need to be able to spread "paint" into transparent areas.© 2003 - E. Barbara Meyer - EdTech Center - Life Sciences - University of Illinois - Urbana, IL USA
Selecting Colors in Photoshop 7.0 Color Palette
...a mini version of the color picker, it is less precise but may be quicker to use. It allows you to select foreground and background colors by clicking on the foreground/background icon in the palette. As with the color picker, you can specify colors numerically as well.
Swatches Palette
... contains 122 swatches from the image. It also allows you so save a color to the palette.
Eye Dropper Tool
... allows you to select colors from the image itself and can be temporarily invoked by pressing the spacebar while using any other tool. The new color can also be "carried" to the swatches palette by the paint bucket tool and saved.
Lesson 5 - Masks and Channels
Using quick masks to refine a selection, saving a permanent as an alpha channel, loading a saved selection and applying effects, create and use a gradient mask, applying filter effects, making intricate selections by using the extract command.
Mask and Channels Masks and Channels
What are Channels?
Channels are "containers" for storing information. There are two kinds - color and selection. You can have up to 24 of them in an image.
What are masks?
Masks are like stencils that protect parts of an image. There are also two kinds - temporary (quick masks) and permanent (alpha channels)
Color Channels
An RGB image has four color channels - red, green, blue and a composite RGB channel. You can perform color corrections on individual channels for precise adjustments.
Alpha Channels
These contain selection information. When you make a selection using one of the selection tools, the area within the selection is editable and the area outside is protected - or masked. You can store selections as alpha channel where they will be saved for use again in the future. When you display an alpha channel, the masked area is black and the selected area is white. The masks can be edited with the painting tools while in the alpha channel
What is a mask?
A mask is like a stencil placed over the image that allows you to edit only a part of the image while the rest - the area covered by the stencil - is protected. Both the protected area and the selection can be edited. Quick Masks are temporary masks which can be invoked from the toolbar and created with selection and painting tools . They can be converted to selections or saved as alpha channels.
Lesson 6 - Pen tool, Paths and vector graphics
Drawing straight and curved lines with the pen tool, editing, saving, filling and stroking paths, converting paths to selections and selections to paths. Differentiate between bitmap and vector graphics, draw and edit layer shapes and layer paths, create complex layer shapes by combining or subtracting different shapes, combine vector paths to create a shape, use edit mode to add or edit a text layer, use a text layer to create a work path, use work path to create a vector mask. Load and apply custom layer shapes.
Image types, selecting tools in different ways and viewing images in different ways, keyboard shortcuts, managing palettes and context sensitive and on-line help. Using the History palette and snapshots to correct mistakes and go back to earlier states of your work. Using the File Browser to manage image collections.
Adobe Photoshop 7 Lesson One: Getting to Know the Work Area
In this class we will be working “continuous-tone images”, that is,
photographs that have been scanned, taken with a digital camera,
obtained on-line or copied from CD’s. They are digital images that can
be manipulated on a computer. The information that makes up the
image is stored as pixels, short for “picture elements” and The density of
these pixels, described as image resolution in pixels per inch, along with
the document's dimensions, contributes to the image’s total file size,
expressed in kilobytes or megabytes.
You can also create images directly in Photoshop. Photoshop is a
bit–mapped graphics program. – or “paint” program, which produces a
collection of pixels. Each pixel has additional data associated with it,
describing its hue, saturation and brightness. A pixel is stored internally as
bits, and a map of these bits make up the image, hence the term “bit
mapped.” The more bits that make up each pixel, the more information it
can carry and the greater the range of color in an image. One bit pixels
can be either “on” or “off” and thus be only black or white. An eight bits
image can display 256 colors and 24 bits can display 16 million color
values.
To modify a shape created in a paint program, you must modify the
pixels in the part of the shape that you want to change. This contrasts with
images created in drawing applications such as Adobe Illustrator. These
are called vector images and are described mathematically by lines and
curves. Vector images can be enlarged or reduced without affecting
their output quality, while bit-mapped images are resolution–dependent
and may display jagged edges or otherwise lose quality if enlarged too
much beyond their original input. Vector graphics are useful for logos,
illustrations and graphs, whereas bit mapped graphics programs are
better able to handle photographs.
There are four clusters of tools in Photoshop that you need to be
familiar with – the Menu Bar at the top of the work area, the floating
Toolbox, the Tool Options Bar below the menu bar, and the Palette
Groups. The important thing to remember is that there is more than one
way to do most things in Photoshop. Use whatever method feels most©2004 E. Barbara Meyer - Educational Technologies Center – Life Sciences -2-
comfortable, but I urge you to make an effort to learn keyboard
commands when they’re available.
http://www.life.illinois.edu/edtech/training/ps/PS7intro.pdf
The Toolbox in Photoshop 7.0
1. Select a tool with the mouse or by a keyboard shortcut.
2. Position mouse over the tool to see the name appear.
3. A small triangle on the lower right of a tool icon means there are
“hidden” tools underneath that are revealed by clicking and
dragging.
4. Tools are roughly clustered by category.
Tool Options Bar
1. If a tool behaves unexpectedly, check its options to see if they’ve
been reset. Click the tool icon on the left to reset values back to
default.
2. Options are context sensitive. Some features are common to many
tools, others are unique.
3. The options toolbar can be moved around if you like.
4. It has a “palette well” where you can stash frequently used palettes.
Palettes
1. Show and hide palettes with Window Menu or Tab key.-
2. A palette can be moved by dragging its title bar, reordered by
clicking on its tabs, and resized by clicking and dragging on the
lower right.
3. You will definitely need to resize the history palette and very likely
the layers palette as well.
4. Palettes have their own menus, which are generally subsets of those
on the Menu bar. Click and hold on the black triangle in the upper
right corner of a palette in order to see them.
5. Hint: create your own custom palette of the features you use most,
by “tearing off” tabs and putting them on top of one another.©2004 E. Barbara Meyer - Educational Technologies Center – Life Sciences-3-
6. Palettes positions are saved when you exit Photoshop. To return
them to their default locations, choose Window>reset palette
locations.
Customizing your workspace
You’ll find that certain types of Photoshop projects will make frequent
use of some palettes and rarely need others. You can open and close
palettes, recombine them and you can save different combinations.
Additionally, you can reset all palette locations back to default.
1. To reset palettes to their default locations:
Window>Workspace>Reset Palette Locations.
2. To save a particular workspace: Window>Workspace>Save
workspace. Give it a name for the particular task.
Viewing an image
Remember that when you change the view of an image, you are only
changing the way it looks on your monitor, not it’s actual print or file size.
There are multiple ways to change the view of an image.
1. Use the View Menu - View>Zoom in/Out; Fit on Screen, etc.
2. Zoom tool “z” – double clicking returns image to 100%
3. Hand tool "h" – double clicking makes the image “fit on screen”
4. Spacebar – Command + spacebar zooms in; Command + option +
spacebar zooms out.
5. Navigator palette
6. Info bar – just enter in the new percentage you'd like
7. Select the hand tool to scroll an image that’s larger than your
document window . Use the spacebar anytime while using another
tool will tinvoke it temporaily.
Context Sensitive Menus
Display a list of actions relevant to the tool you’re using by command
clicking on the image. (Right click on the PC)
Online Help
Online help has a table of contents, an index and a keyword search
feature, as well as hyperlinks to related topics and color example
images. Lesson 2 - Basic Photo Corrections and saving for the web
Choosing the correct resolution, cropping, resizing, adjusting the tonal range, removing color casts, adjusting saturation and brightness, clone tool to eliminate unwanted parts of an image, pattern stamp tool, healing brush, patch tool and history brush, sharpening an image. Optimizing an image for the web.
Basic Guide to Photoshop Correction Photo Correction in Photoshop 7.0
In general you should complete the steps in this order, though not all processes might be necessary for every image. Some touchups such as increasing color saturation or sharpening might be best done on only a selected portion of an image. Before you start, always make a copy of your untouched image and save it as a backup and archive.
Step 1. Determine the correct dimensions and image resolution for your final work.
This will depend on what you plan to do with it. Image resolution refers to the number of small squares, called pixels, that make up the image and provide it’s detail and colors. The greater the number of pixels an image contains, the larger the file size.
In computer graphics, there are different types of resolution. Image resolution refers to the number of pixels per unit length in an image and is measured in ppi (pixels per inch)
The number of pixels per unit length on a monitor is called monitor resolution, measured in dpi (dots per inch) In day-to-day use, these units are used interchangeably, though they are not the same and can cause some confusion when your image resolution is higher than your monitor resolution. In this case, the image will appear larger on screen than it’s specified print dimensions. This is because in Photoshop, image pixels are translated into directly into monitor pixels, therefore, a 1 inch by 1 inch image at 144 ppi will display as a 2 inch by 2 inch image on a 72 dpi monitor. It will print as 1 by 1, but display larger. If you’re working with images greater than 72 ppi, it’s a good idea to display rulers and or check the print size to monitor the “real” dimensions of your work.
If you plan to print the image, then you have to be aware of the output resolution of your printer. A higher resolution printer will get best results from higher resolution images. If you are working with a service bureau or journal the easiest thing to do is ask them what resolution (and image format) is best. If you are printing on a standard laser printer in Life Sciences, 120 to 150 dpi is about right. If you have your own color inkjet, it’s best to experiment but it will probably be in the same range.
The two most important things to remember about image resolution:
- Bit-mapped images can become enormous, and the quality of the output is determined by the resolution of the output device. If your ultimate goal is for the display on a web page or on a computer screen, such as a Powerpoint presentation, then save the image at no more than 72 ppi.
- “Resizing” an image in Powerpoint, Word or a page layout program changes only the display of the image, it does not reduce file size. If you fill your Powerpoint slide show with 300 ppi, 11 by 14 images, then shrink them down to fit the slide, all that pixel information remains, and you are going to end up with an enormous, unwieldy file. Reduce file size "for real" in Photoshop, then save as copies for Powerpoint.
Virtually every image needs at least some cropping to remove unwanted detail that distracts from the subject and creates unnecessary file size.
Step 3. Adjust the tonal range using Image>Adjustments> Levels.
It’s a rare photo that isn’t improved by some adjustment to it’s highlights, shadows and midtones . This can also be done automatically by Image> Adjustments> Autocontrast, which is handy when you’re in a hurry, but in general you get better results by doing it manually with Levels.
Step 4. Remove unwanted artifacts and repair image
The clone stamps, healing brush and patch tool, along with the history palette, are powerful tools that can be pure magic. Use them wisely. The Rubber Stamp hase been probably the most widely used of the retouching tools. You first have to determine the area of the image you want to clone FROM – them press Option(or Alt on the PC) to “pick up” the pattern there. Next, move your cursor to the unwanted object, then drag or click on it. You’ll see a crosshair appear at the original source point, indicating where you’re copying from. Clicking randomly here and there on your unwanted object usually results in more realistic results, as the human eye is very good at picking up the repeated patterns that can occur from smooth dragging. Aligning the source point with the destination point is usually more precise in keeping lighting conditions and shadows similar, and changing source points frequently when erasing a larger area also reduces unwanted patterns.
Photoshop 7.0's new healing brush and patch tool are amazing though, in that they preserve the texture of the unlaying object.
Hint: For removing an object from a plain, relatively flat background with even lighting, simply making a selection of the background with one of the selection tools and pasting it over the object will do the trick. If you select the “feather” option (4 or 5 pixels) before making the selection, you’ll have a softer edge that will likely blend in better.
Hint: The Dust and Scratches Filter is a quick way to rid a scanned image of bits of dirt and and imperfections.
Step 5. Remove unwanted color casts with Image>Adjustments>Color Balance
Improper color casts can be artifacts from digital cameras or scanners; aged photos or slides. If present, they are easy to correct in Photoshop. Even if you can’t see them it pays sometimes to play with color balance to see if it improves the image.
Note on the Retouching Tools:
You might want to improve the color, tone or contrast of selected parts of the image with the retouching tools. All of them use the Brushes Palette to determine their size, and many have an opacity setting and blending modes to consideras well.
Step 6. Adjust saturation and brightness if necessary with Imagements>Adjust> Hue / Saturation.
This can be overdone, but is invaluable for a dull image. Often Powerpoint images will display much better if they are a little oversaturated. Sometimes just part of an image could stand some brightening with the sponge tool.
Step 7. Sharpen image if necessary with Filters>Sharpen> Unsharp Mask.
There are several sharpening tools in Photoshop, and all work by increasing the contrast between neighboring pixels. Sharpenand Sharpen More sharpens the entire image, or a selection, if you’ve made one. Sharpen Edges affects only those areas with the highest contrast.
But the rather pecularly named Unsharp Mask is the most powerful. It’s name refers to an older film compositing technique that corrects blurring introduced during the production process. By highlighting the edges of an image by combining a blurred film negative with the original film positive, it's able to by locate “edges”, or pixels that differ from adjacent pixels by an amount you specify, and accentuate them. Its affects are far more pronounced on screen than when printed, so you may have to experiment. You can also get good results by using the sharpening tool on parts of an image as well.
Amount – the degree (up to 500%) with which you want to sharpen the image. The higher the value, the more dramatic the effect. Values between 25 and 50% generally produce subtle effects. Between 50 and 300% are more pronounced.
Radius – the thickness of the sharpened edge. The higher the value, the more contrast. The ideal value depends on the resolution of your images (dots per inch) and the edge detail already present, and might be affected by old, grainy photographs and imperfections. For on-screen images such as web graphics, 0.5 results in fine, crisp edges. For printing, with a resolution of from 120 to 180 dpi, use a value of 1.0. Though the edges may appear more pronounced on-screen, on paper they’ll look better.
Threshold – how different two adjacent pixels have to be to be considered an edge. The value, from 0 to 255, is the “brightness value”. The lower the value, the lower the threshold, and they will be considered different and sharpened. The higher the threshold, the more likely they are to be excluded from the sharpening.
Hint: Sharpen incrementally by doing Command+F (Control +F in Windows) after you sharpen the first time. Using a filter once moves it to the “Last Filter” slot in the Filter Menu. The Command/Control F keyboard shortcut invokes Last Filter and you can continue to use it until you go too far. Back up a step with Command/Control Z or use the History Palette to back up even further.
Step 8. Save the image in the appropriate format. We’ll talk more about formats in another handout.
Notes:
- Always archive the original unedited image in Photoshop format and do your retouching on a copy.
- The higher the resolution the greater the file size.
- Correcting color and brightness (steps 4 – 6) is not always necessary, but virtually any image can be improved by cropping and adjusting tonal range.
- Results on screen may be different from printed results, so you may have to experiment, particularly for color correction and sharpening. The History Brush allows you to selectively bring back parts of an image that you’ve saved as “Shapshots” in the History Palette.
"Red eye" in photographs is caused by the camera's flash reflecting off the the back of the subject's eye. The spookey red glow results from the fact that the retina is rich with blood vessels. It appears worse if the photo is taken in a darkened room, when the pupils are more dilated.
Most of the new digital cameras have a "red eye reduction" setting involving an extra flash or series of flashes that allow the pupils to adjust and contract, reducing the surface area of retina exposed to the flash. In my experience this feature is worse useless when it comes to photographing critters, as most will flee or cower after the first blaze of light. While you can ask a human to look away from the camera, or warn them ahead of time about the oncoming barrage, generally one chance is all you get with most animals, so it's better to be prepared to do some tweaking later on the digital file.
Based on a lesson at About.com, and excellent source of graphics tips:http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/photoshop/ht/apsredeye.htm?terms=redeye
1. First, make two copies of the image, so you'll have three copies open.
a. Make a duplicate the image with Edit>Duplicate. This will make a copy that will not change as you edit, so you can compare your changes to the original so gauge your progress.
b. Open another copy in a new window by going to Window > Document> New Window. This will allow you to work with the original at a high magnification and view the changes in real time at 100% magnification on this copy
2. In the original, zoom in on the eyes, leave the other copies at 100%. Arrange the windows so you can see all of them, plus the layers palette.
3. Create a new layer.
4. Using the eyedropper, pick up a color from the outside of the iris that best represents the true eye color. It should have just a touch of color with a gray cast.
5. On the new layer, carefully paint over just the red part of the eyes.
6. You may want to gently soften the edges with the smudge tool or Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur, set to 1 pixel.
7. Set the layer blend mode to Saturation. This will preserve the highlights, but might leave the eyes too gray and hollow looking. If so try the next step.
8. Duplicate the saturation layer and change the mode to Hue, which should put some color back but still preserve the highlights. If the color is too strong, reduce the opacity of this layer. You can darken the pupil area with the burn tool if necessary.
Merge layers when satisfied with the results.
© 2003 - E. Barbara Meyer - EdTech Center - Life Sciences - University of Illinois - Urbana, IL USA
Return to Barbara's Photoshop Notes
http://www.life.illinois.edu/edtech/training/ps/correct/redeye.html
Retouching Tools in Photoshop 7.0 Lesson 3- Working with Selections
Basics of selecting and moving objects - which is primary to working in Photoshop. Selecting parts of an image with a variety of tools, using multiple selection tools to make complex selections, moving and duplicating selections, adding, subtracting and rotating selections.
Making and moving selections
Marquee Tools The marquee tool (and it's buddies) lets you create rectangular, elliptical, single row selections and lets you crop the image too. You click and drag it over the desired area with these tools.
Lasso Tools
The lasso tools allow you to draw freehand selections - either smooth or polygon shaped.
The magic wand tool lets you select an area based on color similarities of adjacent pixels. (Note: the Select>Color range command also selects on the basis of color, but it selects non-adjacent pixels as well)
Move Tool
The move tool is used to drag a selection when no selection tool is active.
Lesson 4 - Layer Basics
Learn how create and or ganize an image with layers and how layers affect file size, learn the Layers palette and how to select, view, hide, link and reorder layers. Apply blending modes and add a gradient and text and layer effects. Save a flattened image without layers.
What are layers and what's the big deal anyway?Layers are like sheets of acetate, transparent except where there is artwork on them. You can view all of them at once, or selectively "hide" individual layers to view only one or a few. They allow a high degree of control over your artwork, as each layer can be moved, reordered and edited independently.All layers have opacity sliders, so that you can allow the background or underlying layers to show through.Layers can be reordered in the "stack" by dragging the layer up or down in the layers palette.You can copy a layer into another document by having both documents open and dragging the layer name from the layers palette of the first document and dropping it into the image window of the second.You can "lock layers" together, and a single effect will apply to all layers locked together this way.A layer is transparent until you paint something on it, but once it contains pixels, you can confine editing to only that artwork by selecting "Preserve Transparency" in the Layers Palette.How many layers can you have?You can have up to 100 layers, depending on computer memory. When you create a new document in Photoshop, it has only one layer - the background layer. It's like the canvas of a painting. It can't be moved up within the layer hierachy unless you first convert it to a layer in it's layer options palette. You do have an option when creating a new document of not having a background layer by choosing the Transparent option in the New dialog box. You can also add a background to an image that doesn't have one by selecting the Background mode in the New layer dialog box.How do I create layers?For a new, blank layer - click on the new layer icon on the bottom of the Layers Palette. Or - you can use the Layer Menu bar selection and select "New Layer".You can create a layer from a selection by first making the selection, then going up to the Layers Menu bar selection to New Layer and selecting "Layer via copy" or "Layer via cut"You can also create new layers by pasting or by using the text tool. (See below)You can have up to 100 layers, depending on computer memory.Whoa! My document has layers! I didn't put them there. Who did?Whenever you paste or move a selection in a document, it's automatically pasted into a new layer and appears just above the active layer. You can also copy a selection into a new layer with Layer>New>Layer via Copy (or cut). Text also is placed into its own layer.How do layers effect image format and file size?Images with layers, or images with no backgrounds, can be stored only in Photoshop format.Having layers adds to the size of the document, as the information for each must be stored independently. The storage requirements for each layer are proportional to the amount of pixel information on the layer.Transparent areas to not count.Once you have completed work on more than one layer you can merge them together to help keep the file size down, while you continue working on the document. When finished, you should merge all layers into a "flattened image" containing only one layer. Be certain you are finished though, as once merged or flattened, layers cannot be retrieved. It's best to save a copy of the document in Photoshop format with all it's layers if you think you'll need to go back and edit it.What does the "Preserve Transparency" check box do?Checking this option will allow you to work only on those parts of the layer that are "pigmented" - i.e. have pixel information. The parts of the layer that have no "paint" on them will be "see through" - and will not be affected. Certain filters - like the blur - will not work on a layer with this option is selected, as they need to be able to spread "paint" into transparent areas.© 2003 - E. Barbara Meyer - EdTech Center - Life Sciences - University of Illinois - Urbana, IL USA
Selecting Colors in Photoshop 7.0 Color Palette
...a mini version of the color picker, it is less precise but may be quicker to use. It allows you to select foreground and background colors by clicking on the foreground/background icon in the palette. As with the color picker, you can specify colors numerically as well.
Swatches Palette
... contains 122 swatches from the image. It also allows you so save a color to the palette.
Eye Dropper Tool
... allows you to select colors from the image itself and can be temporarily invoked by pressing the spacebar while using any other tool. The new color can also be "carried" to the swatches palette by the paint bucket tool and saved.
Lesson 5 - Masks and Channels
Using quick masks to refine a selection, saving a permanent as an alpha channel, loading a saved selection and applying effects, create and use a gradient mask, applying filter effects, making intricate selections by using the extract command.
Mask and Channels Masks and Channels
What are Channels?
Channels are "containers" for storing information. There are two kinds - color and selection. You can have up to 24 of them in an image.
What are masks?
Masks are like stencils that protect parts of an image. There are also two kinds - temporary (quick masks) and permanent (alpha channels)
Color Channels
An RGB image has four color channels - red, green, blue and a composite RGB channel. You can perform color corrections on individual channels for precise adjustments.
Alpha Channels
These contain selection information. When you make a selection using one of the selection tools, the area within the selection is editable and the area outside is protected - or masked. You can store selections as alpha channel where they will be saved for use again in the future. When you display an alpha channel, the masked area is black and the selected area is white. The masks can be edited with the painting tools while in the alpha channel
What is a mask?
A mask is like a stencil placed over the image that allows you to edit only a part of the image while the rest - the area covered by the stencil - is protected. Both the protected area and the selection can be edited. Quick Masks are temporary masks which can be invoked from the toolbar and created with selection and painting tools . They can be converted to selections or saved as alpha channels.
Lesson 6 - Pen tool, Paths and vector graphics
Drawing straight and curved lines with the pen tool, editing, saving, filling and stroking paths, converting paths to selections and selections to paths. Differentiate between bitmap and vector graphics, draw and edit layer shapes and layer paths, create complex layer shapes by combining or subtracting different shapes, combine vector paths to create a shape, use edit mode to add or edit a text layer, use a text layer to create a work path, use work path to create a vector mask. Load and apply custom layer shapes.